The DeKalb County, Ala., sheriff's office joined a federal program that helps identify whether people being held in state prisons or local jails are illegal immigrants.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Secure Communities Initiative allows authorities to compare fingerprints of people held in local jails those in federal immigration databases, Sheriff Jimmy Harris said in a news release.
In the past, authorities who believed someone in custody was an illegal immigrant had to contact U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Gadsden, Ala. Each potential illegal immigrant had to be interviewed by an ICE agent he or she could be detained, Harris said.
Now authorities will be able to use a biometric scanner to take fingerprints and check them automatically against the Department of Homeland Security's biometric database, Harris said. If someone has been previously identified as illegal, the booking department will receive a phone call within an hour, he said.
This program is especially helpful in targeting repeat offenders, he said.